The woman behind a bizarre complaint against food chain giant McDonald’s has received an apology from the Richmond restaurant’s owner and manager.
Hai Xia Sun, 51, claimed she was asked to leave McDonald’s on No. 3 Road and Granville Avenue almost two weeks ago after demanding, in broken English, she get the coffee she ordered and not the hot chocolate she received.
However, the admission by those in charge of the eatery fell someway short of the expectations of Sun and her son, Frank Zhao.
Sun and Zhao said Tuesday they were satisfied with the response from local management, despite having last week demanded both a verbal and written apology to them and to all Canadians whose first language is not English.
Zhao had also hinted at legal action if those terms were not met.
“We met with the owner and her top manager in the restaurant,” said Zhao, who accompanied his mom at the meeting, along with former NDP provincial election candidate Gabriel Yiu.
“The owner’s and the manager’s attitude was good, they apologized and promised to follow it up with a written apology.”
Zhao said management refused to accept that discrimination had taken place and admitted only to “miscommunication.”
They also refused to comply with the family’s second demand of an apology to all Canadians whose first language is not English.
“My mom was happy with what they offered and accepted their apology,” added Zhao.
“I have to respect my mom’s wishes and it’s now closed as far as our family is concerned.
“We just wanted to make sure this doesn’t happen to anyone else in that restaurant.”
A spokesperson for McDonald’s, however, said no written apology had been offered, or will be.
A statement Joe Guzzo, franchise owner at the location, said the meeting was “constructive.”
“I provided Ms. Sun and her friend with an apology for the misunderstanding which they have both accepted. We are extremely pleased to have reached a resolution.”
Zhao said his mom spoke in English throughout the entire meeting with McDonald’s management and said everyone concerned seemed to understand her fine.
He’s not sure whether his mom intends to frequent that or other McDonald’s in the future.
